A/N: This is not right after my other fic, Grocery Shopping : A Deadly Task?, but it is in the same general frame of mind. It's a little after one of the Organization's visits into town, and Suzume visits them with some bad news. It's – well, you'll see.
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts I, CoM, or II in any way, shape or form. I also do not own any of the real world references I make. I also do not own Stargate, SG-1 or Atlantis. Why do I add this, you ask? -grins- You'll see.
Warning: If you have not read Harry Potter 6, then go read it! Spoilers for Harry Potter.
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It was another day in the Castle That Never Was, and chaos reigned. As per usual.
"Give it back!" Larxene screeched, chasing Demyx down the hallway. Lightning sparked all over her body, and her eyes were wide open and livid.
Demyx ran quickly through the narrow hallway, glancing over his shoulder frequently. Clutched in one hand was a large hardcover book, with the words Harry Potter on the cover.
"Harry Potter fan club, attack!" Roxas howled from around a corner. Demyx backpedaled hastily as Roxas and Marluxia sprang from around the corner, aiming for Demyx.
Demyx looked from Larxene to Roxas and Marluxia, his hands twitching nervously. "It's just a joke," he chuckled anxiously.
"Get him," Marluxia ordered.
Demyx yelped and zipped through a third hallway, the three angry Nobodies hot on his heels.
Suddenly, Zexion appeared in front of Demyx through a portal. "Oh, hey, Zexion," Demyx stuttered nervously.
Zexion's eyes were glowing strangely. "Harry Potter fan club always wins," he said quietly, as he used his element to freeze Demyx's body. He pulled the book calmly from his hand, giving it to Larxene, who had just arrived.
"Thanks, Harry Potter fan club member," she panted.
"A word of advice?" Zexion said as he unfroze Demyx. "Run." He stepped aside, and the Melodious Nocturne disappeared down the hall faster than you could say Quidditch.
"What was that all about?" Axel asked curiously as the Harry Potter fan club trooped into the game room. Axel had the radio on loud, and it was playing "Going Down In Flames" by Three Doors Down, oddly enough.
"Harry Potter emergency," Zexion said tersely, sitting down on the couch. He looked at the game Axel was playing. "Not Harry Potter related," he muttered, losing interest.
"Isn't there only one more of those books left?" Axel asked curiously.
"Yeah," Roxas replied, sitting down next to Axel. "The seventh one's coming out soon. The only reason the sixth one just came out here is because it's hard to get the shipments to this area."
"I can't believe he died!" Marluxia burst out.
"I know," Larxene replied, outraged.
Immediately, the Harry Potter fan club converged on a table and began heatedly discussing the book.
"They've been doing that all week," Axel commented. "They spent the first week reading it over and over, and now they won't shut up about it."
"I know," Xigbar said wearily, coming into the game room.
"They're saying the same stuff over and over, too," Luxord added. "I'm actually starting to understand some of what went on in the book. Apparently someone important died."
"Don't ask them who died or anything," Axel said, his eyes dark. "Zexion and Roxas cornered me and gave me a two-hour crash course lesson in Harry Potter history. I don't even remember what all they said."
"We can tell you again," Roxas offered, overhearing him.
"No, that's okay," Axel said hastily, turning to his game with too much fervor to be realistic.
Xaldin poked his head in. "Who all's in here?" he asked.
"Me, Xigbar, Luxord, and the Harry Potter fan club," Axel said, drawling out the 'Harry Potter fan club' sarcastically. With each word, he poked at the air like he was pointing to the words in the air.
Xaldin blinked. "Well, I was talking to Lexaeus and Vexen, and we thought we could call for pizza."
"Ooh! Pizza," Axel said, grinning.
"You just want another chance to flirt with Suzume," Roxas said without looking up from the table. He returned to the discussion without waiting for a reply.
"I could go for some pizza," Xigbar said before Axel could retort.
"Okay, I'll place the order," Xaldin said. "What's everyone want on it?"
"Pepperoni," the Harry Potter fan club said simultaneously.
"Alfredo for me," Luxord said.
"Yeah, pepperoni," Xigbar said.
"I'll have whatever, just make sure you order a lot," Axel said, shrugging. "I'm hungry."
"Okay, where's everyone else?" Xaldin asked. "I need their orders, too."
"Well, Demyx is hiding from the Harry Potter fan club," Axel mused, "and I don't know where Xemnas and Saix are, and I don't want to know."
"Are you insinuating something?" asked a voice. Axel froze as Xemnas walked through the game room door.
"Not at all, Superior," Axel replied, the tips of his ears turning red.
Xemnas stared at Axel for a long moment before turning away. "Cheese pizza," he told Xaldin. "I believe Saix will eat any topping, so go ahead and order after you talk to Number Nine." He disappeared in a portal.
"Whew!" Axel sighed, putting a hand to his chest. "That was close."
Xaldin shook his head. "I'll make the call," he said, putting the headphones back in his ears as he left to find the phone.
"Try the kitchen!" Xigbar hollered after him. "That's the last place I saw it."
"What I don't understand is why a castle so large only has one phone," Axel commented.
Xigbar shrugged. "We never got around to buying another," he said. "And then the new members showed up, and one thing led to another, and we just forgot about it."
Luxord shook his head. "I won't even say anything," he said ruefully. He produced a deck of cards from nowhere. "A game, anyone?" he asked.
Xigbar glared at Luxord. "Like I'd play with you, you cheating, conniving little -," he hissed, preparing to launch himself at the Nobody.
"Hey," Axel said sharply, pushing Xigbar back down. His eyes were glued to the TV as he got further and further along in his game. "You'll make me die!"
"You made me die," Zexion called from the table. "But you don't hear me complaining about it!"
"You just did," Axel threw back.
"Why shouldn't I?" Zexion hollered. "You killed me!"
"It is an occurrence parallel to Harry Potter!" Roxas said shrilly.
"Axel is the parallel of Bellatrix!" Marluxia accused, rage coloring his face.
"Not Snape?" Larxene asked.
"No, Zexion is more of a Sirius than a Dumbledore," Roxas said.
"Axel killed Sirius," Larxene said, making the connection.
"Get him!"
There was a scuffle as the Harry Potter fan club got up from their chairs and launched themselves at Axel. Axel yelped and dropped his controller, diving across Luxord to scramble towards the door.
"I'm not Bellisimmo," Axel shouted. He ran out of the door, the Harry Potter fan club hot in pursuit.
"It's Bellatrix!"
"At least get it right!"
There was a sound as Axel disappeared in a portal, and the sound was then multiplied by four as the Harry Potter fan club followed him.
Xigbar shook his head, picking up Axel's controller. The words 'You Lose' flashed across the screen.
"Those fanatical fans," he muttered.
Ten minutes later, the doorbell of the Castle That Never Was rang. Axel darted through a side hallway to escape the Harry Potter fan club and opened the door, beaming. "Suzume!" he said happily.
Suzume rolled her eyes, balancing the pizza in one hand. "Hi, Axel," she said.
"How've you been?" Axel asked, a flirtatious grin on his face.
"Shut up before I kill you," she said immediately, in a monotone. Then she blinked and smiled a little. "Sorry," she said, somewhat apologetic. "It's just been a weird couple of days."
"How so?" Axel asked, closing the door behind her.
"I guess Xaldin has the munny since he called, ne?" Axel nodded. "Well," Suzume continued, walking with Axel down the hall to the kitchen. She knew the castle well, having spent a few weekends there to hang out with the Organization. "Everyone in town has been acting really strange lately. I really don't know why, but it's disturbing. They just stare blankly at me and one another, and it's deadly silent. No one says a word. It's like living in a ghost town."
"Odd," Axel said, frowning. "It seemed fine when we were there last week."
Suzume grinned ruefully. "You mean when you did all that destruction?" she said, not expecting an answer. "Well, it was the day after that that all this strangeness began. It's starting to worry me. Even my friends from school are acting strange. That's how I'd describe it. They aren't acting mean, or evil, just – strange."
Suzume and Axel entered the kitchen, where Xaldin and most of the Organization were lounging.
"Pizza's here!" Xaldin exclaimed, standing up. "Here's your munny, Sue."
Suzume took the munny, pocketing it. "This was my last delivery, so I can stay for a while," she told them.
"I'll go get the Harry Potter fan club," Lexaeus said, rolling his eyes slightly as he stood up. "Zexion acts so strange after they come out, it's nearly unbearable."
"Like he doesn't act strange anyway," Axel commented, earning himself a cuff on the ear as Lexaeus passed by him on the way out.
"You deserved it," Suzume told him as he rubbed his ear. She scowled. "Zexion's nice."
"Where's Demyx?" Axel asked, looking around.
"Still hiding after the book incident," Vexen said, his eyes on the paperwork before him. He chewed his lip absently in thought.
"Book incident?" Suzume repeated.
"Demyx stole Larxene's Harry Potter," Xigbar said, chuckling at the memory.
Suzume's eyes widened slightly. "I feel sorry for Demyx," she said. "What happened?"
"The Harry Potter fan club attacked," Axel drawled. "Just before you came, they attacked me for killing Sirius."
"How'd they make that connection?" Suzume said, disbelief written all over her face.
"Don't ask," Axel said, shaking his head.
Finally, all the Organization was rounded up, and the pizza was opened. Suzume shook her head when they offered her pizza. "I already ate," she explained.
The conversation eventually turned to the last visit the Organization had made to town. "Oh!" Suzume said, her eyes sparking as she remembered something. "I was supposed to tell you guys something."
"What?" Roxas asked.
"Axel," she began, turning to him. He grinned. "You have to do community service to pay for the damages you did last week." The grin slid off his face.
"Why?" he demanded.
Suzume rolled her eyes. "Well, you only destroyed half of town hall and the town square fountain," she said exasperatedly.
"Exactly," Axel said, completely missing the sarcasm in her voice. "I mean, they can fix that easily enough, right?"
"You're supposed to report to the mayor tomorrow at nine in the morning," Suzume said, ignoring his last comment. She glanced at her watch and did a double take. "Is that the time? My mom's gonna kill me!"
She stood up and hastily started walking towards the front door. The Organization called their goodbyes, except for Axel, who was frozen in shock. Community service?
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The next day, Suzume and the mayor waited in his office. Suzume was reading a book, one leg crossed over the other, the dangling foot tapping absently. She didn't even look up when a swirling portal opened in front of the mayor's desk, and Axel stepped through.
"You are late," the mayor said flatly. If one looked closely, they would see he had bags under his eyes, and his eyes had a dead, hollow look to them. "But, no matter."
Axel said nothing, but merely stood there. Then he noticed Suzume. "Hey, Suzume," he said. "Are you doing community service too?"
Suzume carefully put the bookmark on her page, closed the book, and stowed it in her bag. "I need a few more hours to complete my community service for high school," she said, and Axel noticed that she seemed a little stressed out.
"You are both to work on cleaning up the litter from the town park," the mayor intoned, "for two hours."
Suzume nodded. "Why do I have to work with Axel?" she said, complaining slightly.
"Because you're the only one he will listen to," the mayor said tonelessly. "Now get out."
"Can't we reschedule?" Suzume asked, gesturing outside. "It's pouring down rain!"
"Go now," the mayor said monotonously. "The weather is not a valid excuse."
Sighing, Suzume stood up to leave. "C'mon, Axel," she said resignedly.
The door closed on the mayor, and Suzume immediately relaxed more. "I'm sure you're gonna have a ton of fun in the rain, huh, fire boy?" she teased, grinning.
"As much fun as you," he shot back. Suzume chuckled.
"Well, that's true," she admitted. They walked down the stairs to the front door.
"You're right," Axel said after a while. "Your townsfolk are acting strange."
"I know," Suzume said worriedly, rubbing her forehead. "I have no idea what's going on, but I'm the only one that's not affected. There haven't been any car wrecks, robberies, or anything in the past week. Even my friends are doing school work – school work! It's summer, for crying out loud. Where did they get school work?"
"Summer's almost over," Axel pointed out. "They could be getting a head start."
"Don't remind me," Suzume groaned as they walked out the front door. Axel winced as the rain pelted his body, and Suzume pulled an umbrella out of her bag. "It's only made for one person, so we'll have to squeeze together," Suzume said, unfolding it.
"Not a problem," Axel said with a leering grin.
"Shut up," Suzume said automatically, holding the umbrella up. Axel ducked under it, discomfort still obvious on his face. Suzume could see that discomfort well, because they were about an inch apart. "Park's this way."
They walked to the park in companionable silence, because even though Axel kept trying to flirt with her, the two were actually good friends. When they reached the park, Suzume led them to a bench and pulled some plastic bags and recycling spears from underneath.
"I don't mind working in the rain," Suzume said, handing the umbrella to Axel. "And I know you hate the rain."
"You're a life saver," Axel said gratefully, as he had been worrying about getting even wetter than before. "Thanks."
Suzume reddened slightly. "It's just an umbrella," she muttered, embarrassed.
"So, what do we do exactly?" Axel queried, holding the umbrella with one hand and the spear with the other. The trash bag was slung over his back.
"Are you serious?" Suzume said in disbelief. "You don't know what to do?"
"It's not a required skill in Organization XIII, is it?" Axel said defensively.
Suzume sighed. "Well, you spear the trash with the spear, and stick it in the trash bag," she said slowly, as if talking to a child. "The idea is to make the park cleaner."
Axel, oddly enough, settled down to his task quietly. Suzume was suspicious, and was pretty sure he was up to something. But she couldn't prove anything, so she started working, too.
After about fifteen minutes of work, Suzume felt something hit the back of her neck. She turned around, but Axel was working diligently. Deliberately, Suzume turned back around, counted to three, and whirled back. Axel had his spear poised, ready to fling the piece of trash at Suzume.
With a shriek of indignant rage, Suzume threw herself at Axel, shedding her trash bag and spear as she did so. She knocked the umbrella out of his hand and pushed him to the ground.
They managed to roll underneath a tree before finally rolling to a stop. Suzume had thrown Axel's spear out of reach, and was now trying to attack him. Finally, she stopped, and they both realized at the same time that Axel's body was on top of Suzume's, and their faces were barely an inch apart.
"How do you always manage to get us into these compromising situations?" Suzume muttered, shaking some damp leaves out of her hair.
Axel grinned at her. "I'm just lucky like that," he said.
"Well, good for you," she said. "Now, will you let me up?" Axel had, in an attempt to stop the enraged girl, put his hands on her wrists, effectively pinning her down.
Axel tilted his head. "No, I don't think I will," he said, a glint in his eye.
Suzume rolled her eyes. "Axel, let me up," she complained. "We still have work to do."
Axel didn't reply, but just leaned down. Suzume sighed and threw her weight to one side, rolling them over 180 degrees, so Suzume was on top. Smiling smugly, she stood up, pulling Axel to his feet in the process.
"No kisses for you," she told him, brushing dirt and grass from her clothes.
He gave her his best crestfallen face. She just closed her eyes slightly and shook her head. "Axel, Axel, Axel," she said. "What am I going to do with you?" She patted his shoulder as she walked past him.
The rest of the community service passed uneventfully, and it was a sodden pair of teenagers that returned to the mayor's office. They didn't have to see the mayor this time, but just checked in with his secretary. She, too, had sullen, dead eyes and didn't respond to Suzume's attempts at conversation.
When they left the office, Axel could see why Suzume was so worried. "You want to come over to the Castle?" Axel suggested as they returned into the downpour. "At least it's dry there," he said, and Suzume made a face.
"All right," she relented. The two of them made their way to Suzume's house. "Mom, we're going to the World That Never Was!" she hollered.
"Honestly, honey, I don't see why you hang out with those hooligans, and you know how I feel about –"
"That's great, mom," Suzume said sarcastically, pulling Axel out the back door to her Gummi Ship. It was a sleek little thing, all silvery and smooth, instead of being blocky like some Gummi Ships.
"You got new rockets," Axel said approvingly.
Suzume smiled. "Yeah, they're pretty sweet," she said. "They shave two minutes off the ride."
"Then let's go see how fast this puppy can go," Axel said, running inside.
"Get your paws off of my ship's controls!" Suzume yelled, following him. "If you so much as touch one button, I'll murder ya!"
She slid into her chair and slapped his hand away from a large button. "Don't," she said, scowling. "That's the self-destruct button."
"Who has a self destruct button?" Axel scoffed. "Why would you put it there in the open, anyway, without a label?"
Suzume said nothing, merely looked at him. She pointed to the large sign above the button that read: DO NOT PUSH. THIS IS THE SELF DESTRUCT BUTTON.
"Oh," Axel said sheepishly. "There's the label."
Suzume blew air out her nose and took off, taking them into space. "So, don't you agree that everyone is behaving oddly?" she asked.
"Yeah," he said. "They're all tired, and flat-voiced and emotionless. Like Nobodies."
"Not quite," Suzume corrected, frowning. "Nobodies do have feelings; ignore everything Vexen says."
Axel grinned. "Are you subtly admitting your feelings for me?"
Suzume sighed. "Yes, Axel," she said in a loud and sarcastic voice. "I am trying to tell you that I have been secretly pining for you all this time."
"Really?" Axel said, surprised. Suzume sweatdropped.
"Learn the art of sarcasm," she advised. "Oh, look, we're here."
"That wasn't even a full minute," Axel protested.
"I forgot to add that I got a Warp Drive," Suzume told him, grinning. "It can fit in at least ten destinations, if you've visited them before, and you get there -," she paused, and snapped her fingers, "like that."
She landed the Gummi Ship with a recklessness that unnerved Axel. "Do you always fly like this?" he asked her nervously.
She blinked. "What's wrong with my flying?" she asked defensively. "I'm perfectly responsible." Axel winced as the ship jarred. "Mostly."
Axel tumbled out of the Gummi Ship, followed by Suzume, who was muttering, "Drama queen."
They walked into the castle, Suzume shouting, "Hey, Nobodies! We're back!" as they came. Soon, several portals opened in the front room, and most of the Organization was there.
"How was community service?" Roxas teased his friend.
"Wet," Axel said truthfully.
"It's pouring rain in the city," Suzume said, wringing out one of her sleeves, which were still saturated with water.
"Suzume, we're finishing up a round of Scrabble," Zexion explained. "Would you like to play the next round?"
She made a face. "I used to love the game, but ever since I played against Sam, the bartender's boyfriend, I feel kind of stupid," she admitted. "He's good!"
Zexion raised an eyebrow. "Are you turning down a challenge?" he challenged.
Suzume's eyes glowered. "Of course not!" she retorted. "I'm just saying, is all."
Zexion shrugged and gave her a half-smile, before opening a portal. "After you, my darkness-challenged friend," he said, mock-bowing.
Suzume walked into the portal, managing to elbow Zexion on the way. Zexion smirked. "Remind me to help her learn how to use the darkness portals," he called to Xigbar before following her. "It would be a lot easier for all of us."
Xigbar sighed. "More work," he complained. "Why is Sue so difficult when it comes to learning how to make portals?"
"Because she's not a Nobody," Roxas pointed out. "And she's never been very close to the darkness, like Riku is – well, at least was."
Axel and Roxas had been quietly conspiring, and now left without saying a word. "Well, it's good to see that the Harry Potter fan club has gone their separate ways, at least temporarily," Luxord remarked. "Having them clump together everywhere was getting annoying."
"They've returned to their respective friends," Xigbar agreed. "I saw Larxene and Marluxia with Saix the other day, talking about ways to torment Demyx." Demyx, the most hapless of the Organization, was one of their favorite victims.
Two hours later, everyone was gathered in the large meeting room, and seated on their respective chairs. Except for Suzume, who didn't have a chair. After scowling for a while, she settled for perching on the arm of Xemnas' chair, the tallest one. Crouching there, she glared at the rest of the Organization like an ungainly hawk. Vexen was, curiously enough, missing, although everyone assumed he was merely caught up in an experiment and would be there soon.
They were discussing the behavior of the townspeople, as by now everyone else had noticed it, too. "It's like they've lost their hearts without becoming Nobodies," one of them had commented.
"So, Suzume," Xemnas said. "Tell us, have you noticed anything else strange?"
She was making sure that no part of her was touching Xemnas, and replied, "Well, my mother isn't making nearly as much of a fuss that I'm hanging out with you guys. It's like she's too tired to care. And Jack, the bartender? He and Sam seem to be having some trouble. Which is understandable, but they've never been this bad. I think most of it's lack of sleep," she concluded. "But I just don't know why everyone except me is so tired."
Axel decided to speak up. "I noticed, when we were there," he began, "that the secretary of the mayor was typing up a report. She wrote the same sentence at least five times on the computer."
Everyone was turning over this bit of news when Vexen slammed open the doors. Suzume, startled, nearly fell off her perch, and was only saved by Xemnas grabbing her shirt and pulling her back on the chair. "Thanks," she muttered, embarrassed.
Vexen's eyes were wild; he was clutching a sheaf of papers in his hand, and they were being crushed by his death grip. "I've found out why the townspeople are behaving strangely," he gasped.
"Why?" Larxene asked, leaning forward in curiosity.
Vexen stopped, leaning against the doorframe as he caught his breath. Finally, he was able to speak normally.
"The townspeople are under the control of the Goa'ould," he blurted out.
That, of course, went over like a ton of freakin' bricks.